Honkai Impact 3rd experience, starting with a thousand Herrschers

"…………good."

Mebius didn't ask Cheng Xing what he was going to do; she used her connections (Alicia) to obtain the location where the Second Herrscher's remains were stored in the upper level.

After obtaining the location, Cheng Xing left the experimental area without any notification or bystanders, and even left the base altogether.

The others at the base didn't notice that someone was inexplicably missing from the lab, and of course, no one dared to go to Möbius's lab to check if anyone was missing.

The only one who dared to do so was Alicia, who was guarding the body.

After leaving the base, Cheng Xing took a deep breath and began to manipulate the Honkai energy that had been accumulating within his body. Then, a crimson hue appeared in his eyes, and his entire body was shrouded in a mysterious black mist. When the mist dissipated, a jet-black raven stood quietly on the ground.

The jet-black raven surveyed the world with its scarlet eyes. Finally, it spread its wings and, in a bizarre manner, soared into the sky at supersonic speed without making a sound, and disappeared.

Chapter 75: Untitled

At that strangely fast pace, Cheng Xing arrived at the other base in just over twenty minutes.

Upon arriving at the base, his entire bird was enveloped in a dense black veil, so thick that even electronic devices could not detect his figure on the monitoring screen.

It's like wearing an invisibility cloak.

Cheng Xing flew through the corridor, occasionally encountering people, but they were completely unaware that a strange black cloud was moving through the corridor.

When he encountered the locked door, he vanished as if in a frame-drop, only to reappear behind the door the next second, which was extremely eerie.

"Yes, you use that black mist to obscure your existence. Although I don't know why it works, you can indeed briefly enter a quantum state. Perhaps it's because when the black mist completely covers you, your body enters an unobservable mode, so the world cannot confirm your existence, thus allowing you to achieve this kind of ethereal existence."

That guy's voice echoed in my head again.

Why can't I just shut you guys up? It's so annoying!

Cheng Xing was always startled by these sudden voices, which gave him a huge headache. The problem was that he didn't know how to control these personalities; their appearance was simply beyond his control.

Cheng Xing arrived at the heavily guarded cold storage door in no time, where a fairy-like girl with pink hair was standing quietly to the side.

The moment Cheng Xing appeared in the corridor, the girl fixed her gaze on him, as if she could pierce through the mist and see him directly.

"Cheng Xing, I know you're there! Don't worry, there are no surveillance devices here."

Cheng Xing noticed that Alicia had shifted her attention to this side as soon as he appeared. It seemed that his concealment could not fool this guy, so he might as well have a real fight.

Cheng Xing gathered all the black mist emanating from his body and transformed back into a human from a crow. He looked at Alicia in front of him and saw a rusty, seemingly powerless, withered wooden scythe in her hand.

"Alice, let me through."

Cheng Xing knew that this woman would not let him pass so easily, so he just said the usual thing and prepared for battle. Although he had never experienced any form of fighting before, he had no choice but to bite the bullet and go for it.

"Ok."

Alicia turned her body to the side, revealing the door behind her that she needed to guard at all costs.

Cheng Xing was taken aback at first, then began to suspect that there might be a trap behind the door. Could it be that Alicia had already guessed that Mebius might send her to steal the Herrscher's body, so she prepared a trap?

"Seriously, stop doubting me like that. I'm an innocent and beautiful girl! I wouldn't scheme or lie. The Second Herrscher's corpse is right behind me. Mebius is my friend. Since my friend needs help, isn't it only right that I help her?"

"...Then what about your responsibilities?"

"I just helped them guard the door here, and I really didn't let anyone in."

Alicia winked at Cheng Xing.

"...So you do know something, Alicia. Tell me, who am I?!"

Cheng Xing looked somewhat agitated.

"Well... I've already said it before, if you really want to know, then let's be good friends! When you consider me your friend, I'll tell you everything you want to know."

Cheng Xing still couldn't accept the woman in front of him as a friend. She had too many secrets and was somehow connected to his original self... He simply couldn't trust her.

Cheng Xing, with a gloomy face, passed by Alicia, his entire body shrouded in black mist, and walked straight through the gate.

Then a crow, seemingly clutching something, quickly flew out of the door and disappeared.

Alicia looked in the direction Cheng Xing had left and said with a smile, "Still the same as before, you don't believe me at all."

Cheng Xing brought the Herrscher's body back to the laboratory. Although Mebius was surprised that this guy brought the body back so quickly and had a strange guess in her heart, she didn't ask anything in the end.

"Let's begin the experiment."

"Mebius said, then turned around."

Cheng Xing nodded. This was the tacit understanding between him and Mebius. Over the past few months, the two had indeed become friends.

The experiment began, and Jerak appeared beside him as usual, but he did not start instructing him at the beginning. Instead, he calmly watched the corpse in the laboratory.

"what happened?"

Cheng Xing sensed that this guy's mood seemed a bit off and asked.

"...It's nothing, I just think I saw someone who looks similar."

Jerac shook his head, reaching for a pack of cigarettes in his pocket, but remembering he was in a laboratory, he withdrew his hand. He cleared his throat and said, "Alright, let's continue the experiment. We must find a way to enable humans to adapt to the Honkai as soon as possible and gain powerful strength from it. Otherwise, the losses will only increase as more Herrschers appear."

"Ah."

Cheng Xing didn't ask any more questions either. He knew that everyone had their own secrets. Just as Mebius respected himself, he would also respect others, even if it was a secret, well, he should say a personality trait of his own.

Although this guy always scolded me rudely during experiments and always acted like he was infatuated with others, he was still one of my teachers, so I had to respect him.

"Oh, look what you've done! You increased the energy level by 0.1! My God! Even a pig should know what will happen if this continues. You're the most stupid bastard I've ever seen!"

"What are you doing? Didn't you even learn the basics of cell structure? You're making such a basic mistake. Do I need to give you a crash course in the fundamentals?!"

"No way, no way, would anyone really do this in a place like this? Even the apprentices who just arrived at the lab know that this is not a place to do this, why are you wrong?"

Cheng Xing hardened his fist.

He wanted to back out.

Chapter 76: Reality

"Human trials are necessary."

Looking at the data in front of him, Möbius knew that human experimentation was now a necessity if he wanted to continue.

The problem is, where do you find people for human trials if the higher-ups don't approve it?

"As long as we can achieve a balance between Honkai energy and humanity, then humanity can control Honkai and gain unimaginable power... We have done enough basic theory before, and we must find a way to put it into practice."

Seeing Mebius frowning and deep in thought, and considering that the experiment required human trials to proceed, Gerald went against his long-held beliefs and pulled a cigarette from his pocket, putting it in his mouth.

"...Has the time come that it must be done?"

Cheng Xing lowered his head, his heart filled with a sense of resentment. But what could he change? Could he defeat the Honkai alone? Could he save the world by himself?

No, he can't do that.

Is all he can do now to harden his heart and abandon that indifferent pity?

Should we become like these people, like our past selves?

"…Doctor, I'll go find it."

"Cheng Xing!"

At this moment, Mebius's expression was unusually serious. Looking at Cheng Xing, who was hanging his head and not daring to meet her gaze, she said, "You don't need to worry about this matter. Leave the task of finding test subjects to me. If even this matter requires the help of a teenager like you, then I, as an adult, would be far too derelict in my duty."

“I can bear this necessary evil; one more won’t make a difference.”

"PhD……"

Cheng Xing glanced at Mebius, whose expression was unusually serious, then turned his gaze to the side, looking at Jerack's smoking figure and Tan Si leaning against the corner with his head down, not saying a word.

I watched as the young manager held a glass of vodka, a sarcastic smile playing on his lips.

I watched as a young woman wiped her glasses, her hands trembling.

"No matter how distant the past or how distant the future, we humans are always repeating the same choices. Some people adhere to their principles and choose the bottom line in their hearts, but the vast majority of people... do not have the right to make a choice."

"Hahaha! This day was bound to come sooner or later," a burly man with an incredibly imaginative head grinned at the bewildered Cheng Xing and said, "Newcomer, this is the reality we faced back then. Now make your choice... Sorry, you don't have the right to choose, just like us."

"Human experimentation is an insurmountable hurdle, and civilization must begin accumulating the latest experience from here... This is an evil we cannot avoid, a choice we cannot escape, and a reality we cannot change."

The manager drank the beverage in one gulp.

"Cheng Xing, do you think this is right or wrong?"

"I...I don't know."

No matter how things change, no matter how complicated his past experiences were, Cheng Xing is still just a teenager, a teenager who is not yet an adult.

He faced this cruel reality with bewilderment, confronting himself, the path that required sacrificing others to continue, and the inherent evils of this world.

The boy witnessed the cruelty of reality for the first time, and tasted the bitterness of life for the first time.

Cheng Xing remained bewildered for two full days before the laboratory welcomed its first test subject for human experimentation.

She was a woman who looked weathered and worn out; there were obvious dark circles under her eyes, indicating that she hadn't slept well, whether from knowing her fate or for some other reason, it was unclear.

"...Was my death truly meaningful?"

The woman looked at Mebius beside her with a panicked and confused expression.

Möbius said, "I won't lie to you, you are our first human experiment. This case is our first step forward, and the results may not be ideal, but they are indispensable."

"Really? I don't quite understand this, but I'm wondering if, if it really works out, I could... help my family, help my friends... get revenge."

The woman's voice sounded trembling.

Cheng Xing looked at the woman and immediately saw the fear in her heart—a fear of collapse and death, but none of those were the greatest fears.

Her biggest fear is that she is now penniless.

Her children, her lover, her parents, her relatives, her friends—all died in the collapse.

The most desperate voice was that he was talking to himself in the moments before his child died.

"Mom, I'm doing great here. Although I do miss home after being away at school for so long, I'm really doing well. Oh, by the way, Mother's Day is coming up soon, right? I saved up a little money and bought some small gifts to send to you. Oh, nothing expensive, just some little jewelry... Don't worry, I won't spend money recklessly. Oh, and by the way, Mom, I love you..."

Then came a scream, and in that terrified scream, everything was gone.

Her child died in the Honkai, and her own home was destroyed by a nuclear bomb while fighting against the Herrscher. She survived by chance because she was on a business trip. Isn't she lucky?

Cheng Xing didn't speak, but calmly prepared the experimental equipment. Then he saw the researchers, who stood solemnly behind the woman, watching her calmly.